Painting my cabinets need some advice

Hello! I'm starting a project that depending on who you talk to is either a complete nightmare or easy peasy. I want to pain my old cabinets a new color. I believe I have educated myself pretty well for a person who has never done this before. My husband and I recently purchased a new home and as we all know after dropping that much money DIY is where it's at. I'm looking for any recommendations for paint sprayers. I'm looking for a quality tool without breaking the bank. One that doesn't jam up and works well. I was wondering if anyone would have some suggestions or ideas on how to start looking for one without a millions trips to Home Depot to return and try again. Thank you in advance!
Heather

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Painting my cabinets need some advice

Unless you have glossy slab front cabinets, the best paint sprayer for a newbie is a high quality brush and some Floetrol additive to a good latex enamel paint. Plus about a month's worth of prep work on the cabinets, sanding, and priming.

If you have glossy slab front cabinets, the best spray rig will be an automotive body shop where someone who has experience sprays them. That's not for a newbie sprayer either.

Painting my cabinets need some advice

No way would I suggest a first time DIY try to spray paint cabinets!
Way to high a learning curve.
I've never even see a pro spray paint cabinets without completely removing them first.
With the right paint a tools you can get an except able job doing it by hand.
A quality sash brush and a foam roller is what I use.
Going to have to clean the cabinets first with TSP. Rinse them. Then sand to remove any flaws and to rough up the surface so it will hold the new primer and paint.
Going to need a bonding primer first.

Painting my cabinets need some advice

I have used the wagner sprayers, an HVLP (High Vollume, Low Pressure) sprayers, and compressor/sprayer combinations. I also have one of the sparyers which pull paint from a can. I prefer the latter three over the wagner, but the best, in my experience, depends on paint viscosity and finish desired. For cabinets, I would probably opt for the compressor/spraygun option.

I agree with the comment about surface prep. This is 80% (or more?) of the work involved.

I have gotten to the point that I am satisfied with my results, sprayer or brush. The biggest lesson learned for me is to avoid putting too heavy a coat...using multiple thin coats rather than trying to accomplish this with a heavy single coat. (Same lesson whether spraying or brush/roller.) Having said this, for my last finish job I used a brush and was also satisfied with this. I don't like to spray indoors, and don't like the wasted paint associated with sprayers. I use sprayers only when outside, and only when the object has lots of small detail.

I also agree that a compressor is a valuable tool for a DIY person, used for much more than painting.

Painting my cabinets need some advice

Another vote for brush & rollers. I'm no highly experienced painter, but I've started some projects the wrong way and some the right way. I believe there is just less to learn to get a good result with a brush.

IMO good results start with: Thorough Pep Work (ie. no, you can't just hide problem spots with paint). Good quality paint that is right for the job. Good brushes/rollers. Only then do you need to learn a bit of technique, but you'll have set yourself up for success. Start in the least visible spot possible to get your technique down.